Sinafter

I only recently discovered this series and without significant expectation I have thoroughly enjoyed it. With good writing Ronnie Barker is always a treat and Alan Ayckbourn delivers alongside a host of well known contributors including Graeme Garden and Bill Oddie.

In each episode the opinionated Lord Rustless (Barker) educates viewers on a different topic from his country house, supported by his staff, all of whom make welcome contributions. There are also additional sketches that are separate from the central narrative, some of which are very good and each programme is introduced by Barker in the newsreader style that he carried forward to The Two Ronnies.

Lord Rustless is hilarious and the reason that I mentioned that this series has left me broken-hearted is because I read that the impressive cast were given the chance to make a sit-com playing the same roles (His Lordship Entertains) in 1972 but that most of the episodes are lost. Many other 1960s and 1970s comedies are entirely missing and I find it very sad, however Hark at Barker is still with us and it is a bit of a gem!

I have a real soft spot for 1960s movies and I am a fan of all of the ones produced by Harry Alan Towers in that decade. He was frequently involved in making low budget action pictures, but they were often filmed in beautiful locations with numerous stars in the cast. Five Golden Dragons certainly has both but as a result it looks better than it is. Harry wrote the screenplay under an assumed name and I would have done the same as this script is pants.

Christopher Lee, Klaus Kinski, Margaret Lee and even George Raft (eternally memorable as Spats Colombo in Some Like It Hot!) are trapped in this nonsense about a mysterious and impenetratable crime syndicate. I enjoy this kind of escapist adventure but it is a bit too slow moving and cringeworthy to be of interest to most adults. Badly cast leading men are a staple of Harry's productions and Robert Cummings fits the bill perfectly here.

I recently bought this film on blu-ray and the sound and picture are superb. Hong Kong looks beautiful and contributed to me giving this film more stars than it really deserves. I haven't done a very good job of explaining why I am so fond of Harry Alan Towers productions, but this is not one of his best despite having some nostalgic charm. Paroxismus (1969) for example is way better!